Devonte Wyatt is out and Dontayvion Wicks is questionable for Sunday’s game against the Texans. Houston, however, will be severely shorthanded.
While Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt is out for Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans, Houston ruled out four injured starters on Friday.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans announced linebackers Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and Henry To’oTo’o (concussion), cornerback Kamari Lassiter (shoulder) and safety Jimmie Ward (groin) will not play.
To’oTo’o leads the team with 45 tackles while Al-Shaair is an all-around menace with 40 tackles, six quarterback hits, four tackles for losses, four passes defensed and one forced fumble. He ranks among the Texans’ top three defenders in each of those categories.
Neville Hewitt and Jake Hansen are expected to start in their place.
Hewitt is in his 10th season and was a full-time starter for the Jets in 2019 and 2020 but will be making his first start since 2021.
Hansen is in his third season. His only two career starts came as a rookie in 2022.
“They know how we play, they know what to expect, they know how to communicate,” Ryans said this week. “It is nothing new to them. If they have to go out and give snaps, I feel confident in those guys being able to step up and help us.”
The losses of the team’s leading tacklers will impact the run defense. And the losses of Lassiter and Ward will impact the pass defense.
A second-round pick, Lassiter has been sensational. Among all cornerbacks with at least 100 coverage snaps, he is No. 1 in the NFL with a 37.5 percent completion percentage allowed, according to Pro Football Focus.
D’Angelo Ross, who went undrafted in 2019, will make his third career start and second in a row in Lassiter’s place. It stands to reason that Packers quarterback Jordan Love will go after Ross rather than Derek Stingley.
“We didn’t necessarily have that expectation,” defensive coordinator Matt Burke told reporters on Thursday. “Sting is a great player, so maybe teams don’t want to challenge him all the time but, at the same time, just talking about how they operate and the structure of their offense and if you’re trying to force the ball to a certain side or a certain place or whoever that is, then maybe that takes you out of your offense.
“I’m not sure that’s something that they would want to live in and operate in. D-Lo played a great good game for us and we have confidence that he’ll do it again.”
Third-round rookie Calen Bullock, who has two interceptions this season, will start in place of Ward, an 11th-year pro with 93 career starts under his belt.
“Everywhere that we play, that’s part of what we do and part of the mantra,” Burke said of the next-man-up philosophy. “It’s going to be like this for as long as you’re covering football and as long as they let me coach, so we feel good about all the guys. Just in preparation and whatever we’re able to field out there, we’ll be ready to go.”
Backup receiver Robert Woods (foot) is out, as well, for the Texans. That might not be a big deal but Nico Collins, who is No. 1 in the NFL in receiving yards, is on injured reserve.
For the Packers, Wyatt will miss a third consecutive game. Coach Matt LaFleur is hopeful Wyatt will be ready for next week’s game at Jacksonville, but he hasn’t practiced at all the past three weeks.
“A lot has to happen between now and then,” LaFleur said. “I know he’s been moving around quite a bit. I mean, he’s walking normal. So, he’s been working out, running, so hopefully next week he’ll be ready to go.”
Defensive tackle Colby Wooden and receiver Dontayvion Wicks are questionable. Wicks was limited participation all week and Wooden was limited the past two days.
“He’s been getting better every day,” LaFleur said of Wicks.
Several Packers starters who were limited at practice this week are not listed on the final injury report. Cornerback Jaire Alexander (groin), defensive tackle Kenny Clark (toe), left guard Elgton Jenkins (knee), tight end Tucker Kraft (groin), center Josh Myers (neck) and receivers Jayden Reed (ankle) and Christian Watson (ankle) are good to go for Sunday.
If Wicks can play, the Packers would have a full-strength receiver corps against a banged-up secondary.
“It’s going to mean everything,” Watson said. “The more guys that we got, the better off that we’re going to be. We got a bunch of talented guys in the in the entire offense but especially in our room. So, the more we have, the more success we’re all going to have.”